Name and Constituency of Member of Parliament
Mr Vikram Nair, Sembawang GRC
Question
To ask the Minister for Education (a) whether any studies have been conducted to analyse the mental health issues faced by students; and (b) whether more measures are needed to deal with these mental health issues, in light of reports that suicide remains the leading cause of death amongst youth.
Response
1. MOE closely monitors the state of mental health of our students using internal data and through research studies. Two of the latest research studies are the 2020 Youth Epidemiology and Resilience Study with National University of Singapore and the 2024 National Youth Mental Health Study by the Institute of Mental Health.
2. These research insights and data are used to improve the full suite of measures on student mental health. For example, we regularly refresh the Mental Health Education lessons within the Character and Citizenship Education Curriculum to address emerging issues. MOE also provides parents with up-to-date information packages to enable them to better support their child's mental well-being.
3. MOE also collaborates with other government agencies, such as MOH and MSF, to implement the National Mental Health and Well-being Strategy. This includes the Tiered Care Model for youths to promote help-seeking and improve their access to services. The Parenting for Wellness initiative was also launched to equip parents with practical skills in strengthening parent-child relationships and their children's resilience.